A limitation on Paytm’s ability to engage in banking operations beyond February 29 by India’s Reserve Bank has put the country’s fintech behemoth in a bind.
Paytm, which was started in 2010 by Vijay Shekhar Sharma—who became famous as the face of digital payments following demonetization—is currently unable to process deposits, FASTag transactions, or credit transactions through any of the main financial institutions.
As they say “Someone’s loss is another person’s gain”! Exactly on the same lines the rival fintech companies are scripting their new expansion stories. Businesses that accept Paytm as payment have been approached by field agents from companies including Google Pay, Yes Bank, HDFC Bank, and PhonePe. To get a piece of this burgeoning industry, SBI is also actively engaging with domestic and international tech companies to extend its sound box network.
The development has shocked users. The Paytm website claims that the company’s customer base in India exceeds 300 million people. Following its first public offering in 2021, the company’s finances began to deteriorate. Building a sizable loan book, it has been attempting to become profitable and expand into additional segments ever since. Laid off 1,000 workers over a few months is another cost-cutting measure.
According to specialists in the field who spoke with various media outlets, Paytm’s credit operations have nearly stopped and earnings streams have come to a standstill as a result of the regulatory crackdown. This is happening even though probes into the firm are still ongoing.
After facing serious allegations, industry analysts predict the company may face the loss of its licence. Paytm is a shining light in India’s startup scene, and if that happens, it would be a black day for them. Until 2022, the business served as the official title sponsor of all cricket matches played by the BCCI, both at the international and domestic levels. In 2023, it partnered with Ticketmaster for the Indian Premier League playoffs and final.
This disaster has occurred just as investment in the financial technology sector has begun to decline. According to a Tracxn FinTech Report, the third-highest funded ecosystem in the world—India’s fintech sector—saw a 63% drop in funding to $2 billion in 2023 from $5.40 billion the year before.
Latching to the Opportunity
According to industry watchers, if Paytm goes under, customers may go to other financial apps, which would be good for their competitors.
Amid the continuing crises, news surfaced recently that Mukesh Ambani’s Jio Financial Services Ltd was among the leading bidders for Paytm’s wallet business, sending shares of Jio soaring by more than 15%.
“It would appear that businesses and customers are increasingly turning to alternative QR code platforms, UPI, and wallet transactions as a result of the aforementioned RBI injunction against Paytm.” According to Aviral Jain, Managing Director, Valuation Advisory Services at Kroll, “This disruption period could be short-lived if Paytm can resolve quickly,” meaning that competitors of Paytm have a good chance to gain a larger portion of the market.
From a business-to-business standpoint, the effect is more on the company’s bottom line than on Paytm’s reputation, albeit the latter will feel the effects in the medium run. Paytm must instill extra trust in its customers to avoid irreparable harm to its brand during this period of interruption, as Jain pointed out that gaining customers’ trust takes time.
For Paytm’s senior executives, the most pressing issue is calming nervous investors and forming alliances with financial institutions to support its Unified Payments Interface (UPI), wallet, and other merchant services. The firm also has the difficult challenge of transferring loan repayment customers from Paytm Payments Bank to other banks.
The top bank is already pressuring financial institutions to increase their net interest margins and reduce their high loan-to-deposit ratio; Paytm may encounter resistance from hesitant banks even if it simplifies these difficulties.
Additionally, there is the issue of a significant lack of end-user communication, which may eventually cause a retention problem. Nevertheless, the senior executives of Paytm assert that they are fully aware of the situation and want to implement a comprehensive marketing and communication campaign to alleviate these concerns and redirect users to partner institutions.
In the meantime, 42% of Indian Kirana stores have begun accepting payments through other applications, according to a Kirana Club poll. According to the research, Paytm used to have over 69% of the Kirana shop market. The poll also uncovered another shocking fact regarding the level of trust that local retailers have in Paytm. Some 42% of Kiranas have shifted to utilizing different payment apps, and 20% more have said they plan to do so soon. Among merchants that have implemented or are considering implementing alternative payment apps, 50% have opted for PhonePe, 30% are leaning towards Google Pay, and 10% are leaning towards BharatPe.
The National Payments Corporation of India was formed in 2008 with the objective of integrating all payment mechanisms existing in the country and making them uniform for retail payments. However, the majority of the population was opting for cash payments as retailers encouraged this method. There was also the problem of almost half the population that had no access to any form of banking service. This also precipitated the issue of black or illegal money and corruption within the country.
By 2012, the RBI had envisioned building an authorized payment and settlement system that was safe, efficient, accessible, inclusive, and interoperable. This was done as a part of the Green Initiative and to encourage the lesser use of paper in the domestic payment market. UPI was officially launched in 2016 for public use.
The CEO of Netmagic Solutions says UPI has become one of the most successful deep-tech innovations coming out of India. It works on an interoperable four-pillar push-pull model. There is a beneficiary at the front end, the payment service provider, and a beneficiary back end bank that settles the monetary transaction for the users.
As it began to gain traction and prominence in 2019, the Ministry of Finance nullified the Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) on UPI which catapulted the number of low-value transactions, making huge gains on real-time transaction volume data.
From 1st January 2019, UPI became a popular payment option for IPOs. By March 2020, the transaction limit was increased from INR 1 lakh to INR 2 lakhs, which was again increased to INR 5 lakhs in December 2021 for Retail Direct Scheme and IPO applications.
In its first monetary policy of FY 2022-2023, RBI has proposed using a UPI-based QR code for a cardless cash withdrawal facility from ATMs. ToneTag launched VoiceSE, in partnership with NSDL Payments Bank and NPCI, which will enable users to make UPI payments using voice in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada and Bengali language. In 2021, the value of UPI transactions was more than INR 73 lakh crores, recording a 110% rise from INR 33.87 lakh crores in 2020.
The Volume of UPI-Based Digital Payments Across India from FY17 to FY22
Within two years of its launch, by 16th August 2018, UPI 2.0 was launched enabling their users to link Overdraft accounts to a UPI handle. There was an added feature of the AutoPay facility for recurring payments, and users were able to pre-authorize transactions by issuing a mandate for a specific merchant. The newer version also included a feature to view and store the invoice for transactions.
By August 2021, Bank of Baroda, Paytm Payments Bank and State Bank of India were live on UPI AutoPay and registered 204,000, 186,000 and 660,000 mandates respectively. Plans were in place for NCPI to expand AutoPay to international markets and operationalize real-time payment dispute resolution covering 90% of complaints by September 2022.
RuPay credit cards were allowed to be linked with UPI from 8th June 2022. Currently, NPCI is working on a real-time feature that will reduce the time period taken by banks to unblock funds over time-out or transaction from 24 hours to 30 seconds.
Continuing the growth of UPI and its features, the RBI Governor launched UPI 123PAY on 8th March 2022, offering 4 payment options to UPI users:
App-based functionality where a mobile phone manufacturer can install a UPI app through over-the-programming that can be used for payment.
Missed calls through which customers can use a dedicated merchant payment number by giving a missed call. The incoming authentication call will ask for PIN verification to complete the transaction.
Interactive Voice Response (IVR) based where the payment transaction will complete using pre-defined phone numbers.
Payment in offline mode through sound-based proximity data communication.
On 17th November 2021, NPCI International Payments Limited signed an MoU with PPRO Financial, a UK-based financial services firm, to expand the acceptance of UPI into foreign markets, specifically in China and the US, which accounts for half of all transactions from India.
Onboarding of NRI/NRE Accounts
Earlier this month, the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) released a notice stating that Non-resident accounts like NRI/NRE accounts attached to international mobile numbers will be permitted to transact with UPI. To begin with, mobile numbers of ten countries will be enabled. These countries are Singapore, Australia, Canada, Hongkong, Oman, Qatar, United States of America, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and United Kingdom.
The NPCI, in its notice, has clarified that these accounts will be permitted to transact as long as the member banks ensure strict adherence to FEMA (Foreign Exchange Management Act) regulations and the guidelines issued by the RBI (Reserve Bank of India). All the UPI members including banks and payment platforms have been instructed by the NPCI to ensure that they are completely compliant to all the legalities by April 30, 2023.
Lauding this move, Rajsri Regan, Head of Development – Banking and Payments, India & Philippines, FIS said – “NPCI has been working to expand and boost the use of UPI across the world and this move will widen the use of digital payments as Indians living overseas will also be able to make instant transactions.” This facility will soon be extended to mobile numbers of other countries as well.
Will UPI Become a Paid Service?
The Ministry of Finance’s Tweet About UPI Services
The government had made transactions over UPI free of cost to encourage faster and deeper penetration of digital payments post demonetisation and especially, the pandemic. This is the government’s zero MDR (Merchant Discount Rate) framework in which neither the customers nor the merchants pay for utilizing UPI services.
However, in a discussion paper that RBI released in early August 2022, it said that as a fund transfer system bears a resemblance to the IMPS (Immediate Payment Service), the charges in UPI need to be similar to the charges that are applicable in IMPS for fund transfer transactions.
Furthermore, UPI service providers like PhonePe, Google Pay and Paytm Payments Bank have not earned any revenue for the last couple of years for their services. Industry executives are debating that with the setup and adoption of a robust digital payment infrastructure the time has come for them to earn revenue from these transactions so that more players are enticed to enter the UPI service space to build further financial inclusion.
The Finance Ministry has stepped in very recently and has tweeted – “UPI is a digital public good with immense convenience for the public and productivity gains for the economy. There is no consideration in Govt to levy any charges for UPI services. The concerns of the service providers for cost recovery have to be met through other means.”
UPI payment platforms like Google Pay and Paytm have amassed millions of active users and have a deep data mine to access to fine-tune their products. Also, they have other avenues for revenue building. The payment platforms earn a commission from the service provider whenever there is a bill payment for utilities like electricity and water as well as mobile recharges and DTH recharge payments. To these payment platforms data substitutes for revenue to a certain extent.
In the immediate future, it remains unlikely that UPI will become a paid service.
Conclusion
The penetration and adoption of UPI continues to grow as the service itself seeks to grow and expand to include more and more features. While the future is bright for the UPI platform, it will be a wait-and-watch game to see whether the service in the future might attract charges or not.
FAQs
What is UPI?
UPI stands for Unified Payments System. It is a system developed by the National Payments Corporation of India that supports multiple bank accounts in a single mobile application. It facilitates inter-bank, peer-to-peer, and person-to-merchant transactions.
Will UPI become a paid service?
There has been suspicion among the people that there may be the possibility of UPI transactions carrying a service charge. However, to clear people’s suspicion, the Finance Ministry recently made a tweet saying that there is no consideration in Govt to levy any charges for UPI services.
The most effective way to market a company, its products and services is having a brand ambassador. The brand ambassador must portray all the brand values that the company stands for, endorse the company to the fullest ability and help boost consumer sales. An actor that has global fan following for many years is Aamir Khan, as he was also described as the biggest movie star in the world by Newsweek.
Aamir Khan, born as Mohammed Aamir Hussain Khan, is a prominent Indian actor, director, filmmaker, along with being the host of a popular television talk show host. The actor has won numerous awards and accolades such as Filmfare awards, National Film Awards, AACTA award and has also been awarded the Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan by the Government of India.
For many years, Aamir Khan has been listed in the 500 Most Influential Muslims Of The World. The actor is known for his work in movies like Raja Hindustani, Fanaa, Sarfarosh, Lagaan, Taare Zameen Par, Rang De Basanti, PK, Dangal, 3 Idiots, Ghajini, etc. Apart from his acting career, Aamir has also created and hosted the television talk show Satyamev Jayate which became popular for highlighting sensitive social issues in India and occasionally influencing the Indian government.
The actor’s work as a social reformer, tackling issues ranging from poverty and education to abuse and discrimination, made him appear on the list of Time’s 100 most influential people in the world. Aamir Khan is always in demand by the advertisers and is known to charge over Rs. 5 to Rs. 7 crore for each endorsements.
The net worth of the actor was last reported to be $225 million in 2021, while the brand value of Aamir was estimated to be $24.9 million in 2020. Some of the brands endorsed by Aamir Khan are Coca-Cola, Samsung, Tata Sky, Snapdeal, Vivo, UNICEF, “Athithi Devo Bhavah”, Godrej, Datsun, Titan Watches, Etisalat mobile, Vedantu, PhonePe, CEAT Limited, Starplus, Walkaroo among others.
Here is a List of brands that the celebrity film star Aamir Khan is associated with:
PharmEasy
Aamir Khan, as the PharmEasy brand ambassador, launched a campaign on April 1, 2022, where the celebrated actor endorsed the Indian pharmacy company across different platforms. #GharBaitheBaitheTakeItEasy is the name of the campaign of which Aamir is a part.
Vivo India
Vivo is a Chinese tech company that has headquarters based in Dongguan, Guangdong. The company is a subsidiary of BBK Electronics and designs & develops many well-known smartphones, smartphone accessories, software, and online services. Vivo is an independent company and develops its own products as it has its own R&D centres in China and over 10,000 employees.
The company is currently the third largest mobile brand in India with over 10% of the market share. Vivo is behind companies like Xiaomi and Samsung but is ahead of Oppo and Lenovo in terms of market rating. The company signed Aamir Khan as its brand ambassador in 2018.
Kenny Zeng, Vivo India’s CMO said, “The company is thrilled about the upcoming possibilities that our partnership with one of the world’s biggest superstars, Aamir Khan, will open up in the country.” He also added that with the help of the actor the company to explore newer avenues to reach customers as it scripts its future growth strategy in India.
Snapdeal
Snapdeal is an Indian e-commerce company that has its headquarters in New Delhi. The company was found in 2010 by Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal. Snapdeal is known to be the country’s largest online marketplace, with over 60 million plus products from 800 different categories from regional, national and international brands and retailers.
The company has more than 300,000 and delivers to over 6000 plus cities and towns in India. Snapdeal signed Aamir Khan as its brand ambassador for a year and was a part of the company’s multimedia campaign. In the commercial sector, the actor can be seen encouraging entrepreneurship in the country by asking more sellers to list and sell on Snapdeal.
Vedantu is an Indian Ed-tech company, the popular platform allows its teachers to tutor the students online using a real time virtual learning environment named WAVE an in-house built technology. The app operates on a marketplace model for teachers where students can browse, discover and choose to learn from an online teacher.
The Bengaluru-headquartered company was launched in 2014 and was founded by Vamsi Krishna, Pulkit Jain, Saurabh Saxena, and Anand Prakash. The company signed Aamir Khan as its brand ambassador and has since then been a part of its multimedia ad campaign that showcases the pros of the platform.
Shivani Suri, the CMO of Vedantu said, “The campaign is focused on reaching out to parents and addressing their valid concerns with respect to online learning through a series of very relatable commercials, which will resonate with them.” She also added that Aamir Khan as a brand ambassador perfectly embodies the role of an involved parent while bringing his own charm to the character.
Godrej Group
Godrej Group is one of India’s most-trusted multinational conglomerates that has its headquarters in Mumbai, Maharashtra. The company was founded in 1897 and is currently in sectors such as real estate, consumer products, industrial engineering, appliances, furniture, security, and even agricultural products.
Some of its well-known subsidiaries are Godrej Industries, Godrej Consumer Products, Godrej Agrovet, Godrej Properties, and Godrej & Boyce. Godrej has also been changing and redefining the marketplace with its innovative ideas and this has also been reflected in its marketing and branding strategies. This is why the company signed Aamir Khan in 2018.
Since then, the actor is the face of its Har Idea Se Zindagi Muskuraye / Ideas that make life brighter ad campaigns. In an interview, Aamir said, “Godrej is a company which has always stood for the highest in quality and dependability, along with being one of the most modern and innovative brands, constantly ahead of the pack.” He also added that he loved the creative idea of this campaign, it is challenging and full of fun and humor.
Datsun is a popular automotive brand that is owned by Nissan that started production in 1931. The company is well known for its high-quality yet low-cost vehicles manufactured especially for the upcoming markets. A few of the popular models are 510, Fairlady roadsters, and the Z and ZX coupés.
Datsun started selling its vehicles in countries like Indonesia, Russia, India, Nepal, and South Africa in 2014. The company also has built a Renault-Nissan plant in Chennai. Datsun India signed Aamir Khan as its brand ambassador in 2020, the actor is featured in some of the multimedia ads of the ‘ExperienceChange’ campaign.
Commenting on the decision to make Aamir its brand ambassador, Thomas Kuehl, the president of Nissan India operations said that, the actor advocates the bold and fearless attitude of the new generation who strive for excellence and embodies the spirit of Datsun. We are proud to have the actor onboard and be the face of our new campaign.
Samsung Electronics
Samsung Group is a South Korean multinational company that has its headquarters in Samsung town, Seoul. The company became a conglomerate after it diversified into areas like food processing, textiles, insurance, securities, and retail. As of 2020, the company has the 8th highest global brand value.
The company entered the electronic industry in the late 1960s and since then has kept growing consistently becoming the world’s largest manufacturer of mobile phones, television, and smartphones by 2021. Samsung Electronics account for 70% of the group revenue in 2012 thanks to its successful Galaxy series.
Samsung Electronics is currently available in 74 countries and has over 290,000 employees making it the world’s second-largest technology company by revenue. Samsung India made Aamir Khan as its brand ambassador for its smartphones back in 2008.
Commenting on the deal, H.B Lee the president and CEO of Samsung South West said that, “The Samsung brand stands for qualities of innovation, change, discovery, self-expression and excellence in performance. And these very same qualities are epitomised by Aamir Khan, whose quality and depth of work as well as versatility as an actor have made him a much loved and respected actor in India today. We are indeed very proud and privileged to have him as our brand ambassador.”
TataSky is the largest Indian Direct broadcast satellite service provider in the country. The company uses MPEG-4 digital compression technology and transmits using INSAT-4A and GSAT-10 satellites. TataSky is a joint venture between the Tata Group and the 21stCentury Fox which is owned by Walt Disney Company.
The company currently offers more than 600 channels which include 495 SD and 99 HD channels and services along with other active services to its customers. TataSky made Aamir Khan its brand ambassador in 2008, and since then the actor has been featured in all TataSky brand and product communication, including advertisements on TV, print, and radio.
Vikram Kaushik, the CEO and Managing Director of TataSky said that the actor perfectly fits the brand as our brand ambassador and will be instrumental in communicating the benefits of TataSky to consumers across the country.
PhonePe
PhonePe is one of the top Indian Fintech companies known for digital payments and financial services applications. The company has its headquarters in Bengaluru, Karnataka, and was founded by Sameer Nigam, Rahul Chari, and Burzin Engineer in 2015.
The app offers services such as sending and receiving money, recharging mobile, DTH, data cards, making utility payments, paying at shops, investing in tax-saving funds, liquid Funds, buying insurance, and mutual funds made accessible in 11 different Indian languages. It also provides additional services such as booking Ola rides, paying for Redbus tickets, and even booking flights and hotels on Goibibo.
PhonePe currently has more than offline and online merchant outlets across 500 cities in India allowing its customer to use the app for food, travel, groceries, medicines, movie tickets, etc. The company currently has more than 280 million users and also launched the PhonePe ATM in 2020. PhonePe signed Aamir Khan along with Alia Bhatt as its brand ambassador in 2019.
Since then, the two actors have appeared in many multimedia ad campaigns, showcasing a skeptical Aamir Khan gradually getting convinced by Alia Bhatt to become a PhonePe customer.
The six commercials with two actors showcase a storyline, where a skeptical Aamir Khan can be seen gradually getting convinced by Alia Bhatt to become a PhonePe customer. These ads have only one objective, which is to introduce digital payments, and explain the benefits, ease of use, and safety.
Starplus is a popular Indian entertainment television channel that is owned by Star India which is a subsidiary of Walt Disney. The network has programs in genres such as family dramas, comedies, youth-oriented reality shows, and television films. The channel was in 1991 and was initially an English language entertainment channel that broadcasted international shows from the US, UK, Australia, New Zealand, etc.
After the introduction of Star World, becoming the network’s English-language counterpart channel, Starplus became the Hindi language in 2000 and is currently one of the top channels in India.
In 2016, the channel made a campaign with many thought-provoking ads and programs with the tagline Nayi Soch which means new thinking, in order to inspire social change. Star plus signed Aamir Khan to be the face of the campaign and the actor has since then appeared in many commercials of the popular Nayi Soch campaign.
Walkaroo
Walkaroo is an Indian footwear brand that belongs to the U4ic International, a VKC group subsidiary. Over the past five eras, the brand has grown tremendously because of its marketing strategy which encompasses retail and e-commerce. Walkaroo currently has four company-owned and franchise stores in South Indian states and is also planning to extend into the northern states.
The brand was launched in 2013 and originally catered to the footwear space with made-in-house sports sandals, but later expanded its product portfolio with Flip-flops, casual shoes, sandals and loafers at affordable process.
The company announced Aamir Khan as the brand ambassador for Walkaroo in 2019, the actor has been featured in a multi-media campaign known as “Be Restless” in order to reach a younger target audience. In an interview, Aamir Khan said, he is thrilled to be a part of Walkaroo’s journey of making youth across India move ahead confidently and comfortably.
Aamir Khan is fondly called Mr Perfectionist in the industry as the actor quality over quality and also only endorses one brand at a time. The actor has spent over three decades in the film industry and is known not only for his movies, but also for his brand associations. Aamir Khan has proudly in some of the most iconic television commercials endorsing brands.
As a social reformer, Aamir has also endorsed meaningful campaigns like “Athithi Devo Bhavah”, UNICEF to promote child nutrition, the IEC campaign to raise awareness about malnutrition, and Starplus’s Nayi Soch to inspire social change. But besides that, the actor is known to be highly selective in the big commercial brands that he endorses. Currently, many new brands are approaching the actor to rope him in as their brand ambassadors in order to attract audiences of all age groups.
FAQs
Who is Aamir Khan?
Aamir Khan born as Mohammed Aamir Hussain Khan is one of the most popular Indian actor, director, filmmaker, and also a television talk show host.
What is the brand value of Aamir Khan?
The brand value of Aamir Khan was over $24.9 million in 2020.
BharatPe and PhonePe which are two digital payment applications in India have been fighting in the Delhi High Court regarding trademark rights on their name. It is said that the companies have been fighting among themselves since the year 2018. Let’s look at the complete case study of BharatPe and PhonePe.
The two major digital payment applications have been said to have fighting over the usage of the suffix Pe in their names and the company PhonePe has been claiming trademark rights over it. It is observed that both the companies have been arguing about the topic since the year 2018 and later the Bengaluru based startup PhonePe moved to the court.
The two leading Digital payment applications have been fighting in the court for a very long time. The documents seen have conveyed that the Flipkart owned PhonePe has sought an authoritative order from the High Court against BharatPe for the usage of the word Pe in the name.
It is said that the court did not grant an injection on the original appeal of PhonePe. The suit that had been complained about was based on seeking an authoritative order restraining the use of trademark, passing off, damages, etc. The company PhonePe has filed a suit on BharatPe for using the suffix Pe in both the languages English as well as Hindi and also both in graphic design as well as text.
PhonePe has been said to have sent a legal notice to BharatPe last year and the company had soon changed the logo and the colour of their original frame but that did not solve the issue and PhonePe had taken the case to the court.
BharatPe old vs new logo
A PhonePe spokesperson had conveyed that the company had approached the Delhi high court in order to protect their brand trademarks which they believe were being broken against the agreement of the law and added that the company was not interested to comment beyond this whereas BharatPe had declined to comment about the issue.
The Justice had conveyed that the usage of the word Pe in both the company’s names was nothing but a different spelling used to denote the word pay and added that no rights can be claimed over a mark which describes a word or even a word which is used to describe a part by misspelling it.
The court also added that the word Pe had not derived any other meaning other than pay. That is the company has not created a different impression on the minds of people like giving the word Pe a secondary meaning which refers to the goods or service provided by the company.
However, the Justice had conveyed that if the word Pe has acquired a secondary meaning then the court would look for a trial and the company will have to prove to the court that the word has a secondary meaning and the primary meaning i.e., pay should have been completely removed from the minds of their consumers. In order to move forward with this, the company will have to create evidence from their customers that the word has a complete secondary meaning which is related to the goods or service they provide.
The Court had said that considering the above factors both PhonePe and BharatPe are made up of several parts and added that these parts cannot be separated as Phone and Pe and Bharat and Pe. The court conveyed that the company PhonePe cannot claim rights over the word Pe.
The court added that the word Pe provides the meaning of the service provided by both the companies that is pay and said that by misspelling Pay and Pe there cannot be any claim on the legal positions.
About PhonePe and BharatPe
PhonePe Logo
PhonePe and BharatPe are both companies that provide digital payment services where as BharatPe provides their services only for the merchants and concentrates completely on that sector but PhonePe provides for both merchants as well as individual consumers as anyone who downloads the app can use PhonePe’s service.
BharatPe Logo
PhonePe has been increasingly expanding towards the merchant payments sector and BharatPe can be considered to be one of its major competitors in the field. PhonePe is considered to have a valuation of around USD 7 billion according to Morgan Stanley and BharatPe has been the fastest growing merchant payment company.
BharatPe has conveyed that they have around 1.5 million merchants on their platform with a daily transaction of around INR 7 lakhs and PhonePe for business has around 4.2 million merchants using it actively. Both the companies are considered to be expanding aggressively on-boarding offline merchants.
BharatPe is a billion-dollar company with a valuation of close to USD 1 billion whereas PhonePe is already in the billion-dollar club. It is considered to be the first instance where 500 crores + companies involving into a fight against the trademark.
FAQ
Who is the founder of BharatPe?
Ashneer Grover and Sashvat Nakrani are the founders of BharatPe.
Is BharatPe Government company?
BharatPe is a private company founded in 2018.
Is PhonePe an Indian company?
PhonePe is an Indian digital payments and financial services company headquartered in Bangalore, India. It was founded in December 2015, by Sameer Nigam, Rahul Chari and Burzin Engineer.
Is BharatPe and PhonePe same?
No, BharatPe and PhonePe are different companies. They both offer digital payment services.
The invention of the ATM revolutionized the way we exchange and handle money. And the advent of digital wallets has put that revolution into oblivion. Why? We now carry out transactions without cash or card in our pockets. Digital wallet or UPI (United Payments Interface) was launched in 2015 by the state-owned National payments corporation of India (NPCI), the organization that manages all the digital payments in India. UPI is racing towards becoming the leading payment mode in India today.
With the development of the Unified Payments Interface, the battle over digital payments has narrowed down to 3 major players: Google Pay, PhonePe, and Paytm. In the month of February 2021, the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) recorded the total Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions in India at 2.29 billion as compared to 2.30 billion in January. Paytm achieved over 1.2 billion monthly transactions. Paytm has the highest market share in offline merchant payments with 15 percent month-on-month growth. Whereas, PhonePe in its quarterly report (Q2 2021) stated that the company clocked over 3.94 billion transactions on its platform, with a total payments value of over Rs 7.47 lakh crore.
E-wallets such as Paytm and PhonePe were saviors for Indians after demonetization took place in November 2016. Imagining transactions without these two mobile wallets is not possible anymore. In fact, the digital payments space has become too crowded with the emergence of several Indian fintech ventures; digital platforms are competing against each other to provide customers with the smoothest transaction experience. Which is better PhonePe or Paytm? Which is more secure Paytm or PhonePe? This StartupTalky post compares Paytm and PhonePe using 10 parameters to solve the debate.
Paytm was launched by Vijay Shekhar Sharma in 2010. One97 Communication Ltd is Paytm’s parent company. Paytm is counted amongst the best payment apps in India and offers a mobile wallet for carrying out transactions. It also allows bill payment for mobile services, DTH services, and much more. Paytm has established itself as a sophisticated mobile payment application and has catered to more than 250 million users in the last 8 years. It has the capacity of handling more than 5000 transactions per second.
Some salient features of Paytm are:
Zero banking charges
Transaction limit of INR 1 lakh for wallet along with UPI bank transfer
RBI-approved safe and secure digital wallet
The payments bank, ticket booking (for trains, buses, flights, and movies), and UPI payments
PhonePe is also counted amongst the best payment apps in India. It was founded by Sameer Nigam and Rahum Chari, former Flipkart employees, in 2015. In 2016, PhonePe became the first Android app to provide UPI-based user services. Within just 3 months of its launch, the PhonePe apphit 10 million downloads. PhonePe also reached the 50 million badge on the Google play store pretty quickly. However, it wasn’t a smooth sail for this digital payments provider. In January 2017, ICICI bank and Airtel blocked PhonePe for the violation of NPCI regulations. The matter was resolved in February 2017.
The transaction limit is INR 10,000 for wallet and INR 1 lakh for UPI
Paytm Vs PhonePe – 10 Vital Comparison
1. Interface
The user interface (UI) is the most important feature of any app. People are quick to form perceptions just by the user interface. Paytm and PhonePe differ when one considers the user interface.
Clarity – When it comes to clarity, PhonePe has an edge over Paytm. PhonePe icons are spaciously placed while Paytm icons are concentrated.
Fonts – The fonts used on PhonePe’s app are slightly bigger than the ones used by Paytm. A possible reason could be that Paytm offers more services than PhonePe (e.g. Paytm Mall); hence, showing the icons in bigger fonts could hinder visibility.
Ease of Access – Very few icons appear on Paytm’s home page (in its mobile app) and you have to click further to see other options. This is not the case with PhonePe. Every feature can be accessed from a single page in PhonePe’s app. Again, Paytm has different types of services in the form of vouchers, Paytm Mall, education, games, travel entertainment, and food. Showing all of them on one page is not an easy task.
Paytm VS PhonePe
2. UPI Payments Facility
PhonePe lets you make UPI payments to your contacts and other account holders with the help of the IFSC code. This approach enables you to transfer money from one bank account to another as well. On the PhonePe app’s home page, you find the option of money transfer which can then be used to choose a beneficiary. With a single click, you can reach the payments page by clicking on ‘send to complete the payment’.
Paytm has a similar process but with some more steps. People find it easier to make UPI payments via PhonePe when compared to Paytm.
3. Merchant Payment
PhonePe gives you a comparatively better interface for merchant payment than Paytm. PhonePe has the QR icon on the top of the home page, whereas the QR icon is at the bottom in Paytm’s app. PhonePe saves the merchant name and account number on the home page, similar to how you would save a beneficiary name and account number. Therefore, you don’t need to add any details the next time you pay the same merchant.
4. Recharge
When it comes to recharging facilities, both apps support recharge of mobile, DTH services, and other utilities. PhonePe, however, completes this process quicker than Paytm. In Paytm, you need to navigate through multiple pages to perform the recharge. In PhonePe, much navigation isn’t needed.
Recharge facilities such as bill payment are easier in PhonePe since it takes a single click to reach the payments page. Paytm requires you to follow some more steps to land on the payments section.
Digital Wallet
UPI feature
Mobile Wallet
Bill payment
Debit/credit
Paytm
yes
yes
yes
yes
PhonePe
yes
yes
yes
yes
BHIM
yes
no
no
no
Freecharge
yes
yes
yes
yes
Google
yes
no
no
no
6. Cashback
Which app gives more cashback Paytm or PhonePe? Both digital payment apps give cashback benefits on your payments. As to which one gives more cashback depends on the circumstance. Your first transaction on either app is likely to give you the highest reward. PhonePe provides cashback on transactions without having to activate some offer. When using Paytm, you need to activate an offer to get the cashback.
7. Charges
Both Paytm and PhonePe levy charges for fund transfer from your digital wallet to your bank account. Neither Paytm nor PhonePe gives any kind of relief when it comes to funding transfer charges. The fee is nearly the same for both Paytm and PhonePe.
Paytm offers more services than PhonePe. Just look at the enormity of Paytm Mall! And then there’s the seamless experience of availing services such as movie bookings, etc. Paytm beats PhonePe in some services, whereas PhonePe leads in others. Movie tickets can be easily booked on Paytm. But booking train tickets and checking train status is easier on PhonePe.
9. Account Management
The account management feature of PhonePe is better than Paytm’s. You can handle management-related options in just a couple of clicks in PhonePe. Generally, Account Management comprises auto-payment of bills and bill payment reminders. And PhonePe has a better interface for these two options. Just tap on the ‘My Money’ tab and to reach the auto-pay and reminders icons. You can set the auto-pay service for your utility bills and reminders from this space.
10. Customer Care
Both Paytm and PhonePe offer dedicated customer service helplines. PhonePe’s ‘help section’ is extensive and covers nearly every imaginable query. Most of your doubts can be resolved by the help section. You can also contact PhonePe representatives and expect a reply within 24 hours. Paytm does not lag behind this aspect. Its 24X7 help desk has improved significantly over time and is at par with some of the best help desks in the world.
FAQs on PhonePe Vs Paytm
What is PhonePe?
PhonePe is a digital wallet platform and online payment company headquartered in Bangalore, India.
How PhonePe app works?
PhonePe works on the Unified Payment Interface (UPI) system. All you need is to enter your bank account details and create a UPI ID. You don’t need to recharge the wallet because the money will be directly debited from your bank account at the click of a button in a secure manner.
Which is more secure Paytm or PhonePe?
PhonePe is constantly working round the clock on making transactions highly secure and safe. It uses a mix of cutting-edge technology and strong risk & fraud processes to keep fraudsters at bay.
Bharatpe was launched back in March 2018 and since then it has created a buzz all over the country. The company caters to small store owners like the Kirana store owners and other small merchants. Its primary products and services are all finance-related because it offers QR codes for making UPI payments, Bharat Swipe for card acceptance, and other small business finances.
Bharatpe came out when there was tight competition among those who were already doing well in the market like Paytm, Phonepe, and other such companies. It was quite surprising that within two years, Bharatpe grew so much and is now looking forward to getting its banking license in India.
This is quite unusual because it is not something that happens with every business which has just started in the financial market. For a company like Bharatpe, this is a great achievement.
Founder of BhataPe-Ashneer Grover on license for India’s 1st digital small finance bank
About Bharatpe
Bharatpe Logo
Bharatpe is not a government-owned company but is a private one. The owner of Bharatpe is Ashneer Grover and has its head office based in Delhi. This free application can be used by anyone to make payments by scanning QR codes or people can even make card payments through ‘Swipe’.
Merchants can sign up for the application free of cost and can start accepting payments from their customers instantly. The transactions that are made between the merchants/shop owners/ Kirana store owners/ shopkeepers are done directly through the bank accounts of both parties.
Bharatpe application can be used to scan all types of QR codes whether it is a Paytm code, Phonepe or Gpay, or any other UPI app. Additionally, for every transaction you make using Bharatpe, there will be no amount deducted as ‘transaction charges’ which is so much of a standout feature of the app.
Bhavik Koladia (Group Head – Product & Technology)
Suhail Sameer (Group President)
Bharatpe’s Bold Move for getting Banking License
Bharatpe will be joining the $1 billion unicorn club valuation within the next few months or a year and along with it, they are going to be the half-owner of a bank in India. Jaspal Bindra, who was a former Standard Chartered Bank Asia Pacific CEO will be the owner of the other half of the bank.
Now, coming to the bold move that Bharatpe has made is that they will be setting up a small finance bank in approval with the Reserve Bank of India. However, Bharatpe will not be the only one to do so because Centrum Financial Services will also be a part of the new ‘small finance bank’.
Bharatpe is about to take over the crisis-ridden banks Punjab and Maharashtra Cooperative Bank and soon after that, they will be setting up its small finance bank. Also, thanks to RBI for granting a license to Bharatpe for taking such an initiative to keep the services of these banks running.
RBI has granted the banking license to Bharatpe for the first time after six years. Bharatpe had announced that a former head of SBI, Rajnish Kumar will be joining as a chairman of the board and will be acting as a mentor as well for setting up SFB.
Bharatpe is now India’s leading fintech company which is dealing with UPI payments primarily. But, that is now how the company generates its income. In an interview with India TV, the CEO and the co-founder of the company, Ashneer Grover said that the company is into lending businesses as well.
The company offers a payment system to the merchants for free so that they can become an integral part of their business. But, the company earns its revenues by conducting lending business. Bharatpe also offers loans to the merchants within 5 minutes as said by the CEO & Co-founder, Ashneer Grover.
Bharatpe offering loans is also one of the features that are new to the market along with merchant-to-merchant lending. Ashneer Grover, in an interview with India TV, said that all documentation of taking a loan can be done in the smartphone itself and within five minutes the money would be transferred to the merchant’s bank account.
Conclusion
Bharatpe’s business has been expanding over the last 3-4 months growing from 65 cities to 100 cities during the time. Suhail Sameer, Group President of Bharatpe said in an interaction with the Economic Times said that the company grew significantly within two years.
With the growing usage of digital payments, Bharatpe might become the leader of e-payment in India. The company is planning to expand its business further to 300 more cities by March 2023.
FAQs
Is Bharatpe approved by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)?
Yes, Bharatpe has been approved by the RBI and has been granted a license to set up a small finance bank in India.
Is Bharatpe free?
Bharatpe is completely free of cost. The company does not charge any transaction fee.
Who is the founder of Bharatpe?
Ashneer Grover and Shashvat Nakrani has founded Bharatpe on March 20, 2018.
Indian Premier League is considered and seen more like a festival in India than just a cricket tournament. This sporting event creates a lot of joy and enthusiasm in the country. It is a cricket tournament which is conducted every year in the country between certain cricket clubs.
With the 14Th edition of IPL is just around the corner, Let’s look at the sponsors of IPL 2021.
List of All the Brands that are Sponsoring IPL 2021
Title Sponsor of IPL 2021
Vivo
Vivo is the title sponsor of the tournament. Last year due to the Indo-China issues the Title sponsor was removed from the list. This year the smartphone company is back as the title sponsor of IPL 2021 and it will be called as Vivo IPL 2021.
Vivo is the Title sponsor of IPL 2021
Tata Safari
Tata Motors is one of the biggest car manufacturing company of India. Tata has sponsored their new car Tata Safari for the top players to win this season of Vivo IPL 2021.
Media Rights of Vivo IPL 2021
Star Sports
Star Sports have the media rights for the tournament. This means that you can view the match only through the channels of the star media company. This year Star Sports have signed 14 sponsors for Vivo IPL 2021.
Dream 11 is an Indian-based fantasy sports platform. Dream 11 is the first Indian gaming company to enter into the Unicorn Club. The company was founded in the year 2008. The platform lets you play fantasy football, cricket, hockey, basketball, and many other games. Dream 11 is one of the co-presenting sponsors of Vivo IPL 2021.
Byju’s
Byju’s is an Indian-based Multinational ed-tech company. The company is located in Bangalore. It was founded in the year 2011. Byju’s is the world’s most valuable ed-tech company. Byju’s was a sponsor of IPL 2020 as well. They are also the co-presenting sponsors of Vivo IPL 2021.
PhonePe
PhonePe is an Indian financial technology and payments company. PhonePe is also headquartered in Bangalore India. The company was acquired by the e-commerce firm Flipkart. The company was founded in the year 2015. PhonePe is one of the co-presenting sponsors of Vivo IPL 2021.
Justdial
Justdial is a company that helps you to search for different services in India. The company was founded in the year 1996 and is located in Mumbai. Justdial is also one of the co-presenting sponsors of Vivo IPL 2021.
Co-powered Sponsors of IPL 2021
Upstox
Upstox is one of the largest stockbrokers in the country. They are a discount stockbroker which is backed by Ratan Tata. Upstox is one of the co-powered sponsors of Vivo IPL 2021.
Vimal Elaichi
Vimal Elaichi is considered to be a product used as a mouth freshener. They are also signed up as one of the co-powered sponsors of Vivo IPL 2021.
Bingo is a brand of ITC limited. ITC is an Indian MNC which is headquartered in Kolkata. ITC has a wide range of products and brands under them. Bingo is one of the brands under ITC which provides packaged chips. Bingo is one of the associate sponsors of Vivo IPL 2021.
Cred
Cred is aa Indian-based mobile application which lets you pay your credit card bills. It was started in the year 2018 and is located in Bangalore. Cred is one of the associate sponsors of Vivo IPL 2021.
Havells Fans
Havells is an Indian-based electronic equipment manufacturing company. Havells fans is a brand under Havells that manufactures and sells fans. Havells fans is also one of the associate sponsors of Vivo IPL 2021.
Garnier Men
Garnier is a cosmetic brand of L’Oréal. It is a French based cosmetic company. Garnier Men is a brand which manufactures products for men which include facewash, shaving creams, etc. Garnier Men is also one of the associate sponsors of Vivo IPL 2021.
Kamla Pasand
Kamla Pasand is a brand that sells pan masala. They are famous for their tagline which is Anokha Swaad. They are also one of the associate sponsors of Vivo IPL 2021.
Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI)
Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) is an organization in India which maintains the industry standards in the Mutual Funds sector of the country. AMFI was established in the year 1995. AMFI is one of the associate sponsors of Vivo IPL 2021.
Frooti
Frooti is a mango flavored drink that is sold in India. It is manufactured under the company Parle Agro. Frooti was launched in the year 1985. It is one of the successful products manufactured by Parle Agro. Frooti is one of the associate sponsors of Vivo IPL 2021.
Pharmeasy
Pharmeasy is an Indian company which involves in the delivery of pharmaceutical products such as medicines. They have signed up as one of the associate sponsors of Vivo IPL 2021.
Livspace
Livspace is an Indian company that involves in interior designing and renovation. The company was founded in the year 2014. They have also signed up to be one of the associate sponsors of Vivo IPL 2021.
Swiggy
Swiggy is an online food ordering and delivery app. It is India’s largest food delivery app. The company was founded in the year 2014 and is located in Bangalore. Swiggy is one of the associate sponsors of Vivo IPL 2021.
Parle Agro
Parle Agro is an Indian MNC. They own the brands such as Frooti, Appy, Hippo, Bailey, and many more. They have signed up to be one of the associate sponsors of Vivo IPL 2021.
Unacademy
Unacademy is an Indian online educational technology company. It was started as a YouTube channel and later launched as a company in the year 2015. Unacademy is one of the associate sponsors of Vivo IPL 2021.
Asian paints is an Indian MNC. They are involved in the manufacturing, selling, distribution of paints. They are also involved in coating, home décor, etc. The company was founded in the year 1942. Asian paints is one of the new sponsors joining the list this year.
Thumps Up
Thums Up is a soft drink company that was launched in India under the brand Cola. It was first introduced in the year 1977, later the company was re-launched by Coco-Cola to compete with Pepsi. Thums Up is also a sponsor for Vivo IPL 2021.
Vodafone-idea
Vodafone Idea is a telecommunication company which is located in Mumbai. Both the company runs the business together under one brand Vi. They are also a sponsor of the 2021 Vivo IPL.
Mondelez
Mondelez is an American MNC which is located in Chicago. The company deals with food, confectionery, beverage, snacks, etc. They are also a new sponsor of the 2021 Vivo IPL.
Amazon Prime
Amazon prime is an OTT platform that is run under the e-commerce giant Amazon. It is one of the most common OTT platforms used by Indians and other people across the globe. Amazon Prime is also one of the sponsors of the 2021 Vivo IPL.
Groww
Groww is an Indian-based platform. The company provides a platform for online investments. The platform has more than 10 million registered users. It is one of the growing mobile platforms in the Finance and Insurance Industry of the country. They are also a sponsor of Vivo IPL 2021.
Disney + Hotstar
Disney + Hotstar is an OTT platform in India. They also have the media rights which will let you watch the live matches on their platforms if you have a VIP or premium subscription.
The platform has signed 10 sponsors for IPL 2021. They have signed up some common sponsors such as PhonePe, AMFI, and Dream 11. The other companies which have signed up have been mentioned below.
Mumbai Indians Sponsors
DHL Express
DHL express is an international courier packaging and express delivery service company. DHL express will be one of the principal sponsors of Mumbai Indians and they will also be backing the team this season.
Samsung
Samsung is the famous smartphone manufacturing company. It is one of the companies which has a major share in the smartphone market of India. Samsung is also one of the principal sponsors of Mumbai Indians
Jio
Jio is a telecommunication company which operates under Reliance Industries. Jio is one of the largest and top most telecom company in India. Jio is the principal sponsor of Chennai Super Kings, Rajasthan Royals, Kings Punjab and Sunrisers Hyderabad. The company is also one of the associate sponsors of Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore,
Astral Pipes
Astral Pipes is an Indian based pipe manufacturing company. It is one of the best pipe manufacturing company in the country. Astral Pipes is also one of the associate sponsors of Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore,
Marriot Bonvoy
Marriot Bonvoy is a chain of hotels. It has a presence globally and it is one of the largest hotel chain company in the world. Even Marriot Bonvoy will be one of the associate sponsors of Mumbai Indians.
Official Partners of Mumbai Indians
USHA, Dairy Milk, Kingfisher Calenders, Mai Dubai, Colgate, William Lawson’s Music CDs, Dream 11, MakeMyTrip, Kotak, Performax, ESA, Radio City 91.1 FM, Fever 104 FM, Boat and DNA Networks are the official sponsors of Mumbai Indians for Vivo IPL 2021.
BKT tyres
BKT tyres is one of the tyre manufacturing company which is located in Mumbai, India. They will be one of the companies backing the Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore, team this season. They are also the associate sponsors of Chennai Super Kings
PhonePe
PhonePe will be one of the companies backing the Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore this season.
Royal Challengers Bangalore Sponsors
Muthoot Fincorp
Muthoot Fincorp is a subsidiary company of Muthoot Blue. Muthoot fincorp provides financial services. They are the title sponsors of RCB for the 2021 IPL season
Puma
Puma is a MNC which manufacturers sports apparels, casual and sports shoes. They are one of the principal sponsors of RCB for the 2021 IPL season.
Myntra
Myntra is an Indian-based e-commerce platform. Myntra was acquired by Flipkart an Indian-based e-commerce giant. Myntra is also one of the principal sponsors of RCB for the 2021 IPL season.
Exide
Exide is an Indian-based battery storage manufacturing company. They also provide life insurance services. Exide is also one of the principal sponsors of RCB for the 2021 IPL season.
Nuvoco DP World
Nuvoco DP world is a logistics company. The company is based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Nuvoco DP World is one of the principal sponsors of RCB for the 2021 IPL season.
MPL
Mobile Premier League (MPL) is a mobile application. It is one of the e-sports platform of India. MPL is one of the associate sponsors of RCB. MPL is also a principal sponsor of Kolkata Knight Riders.
MAX Life Insurance
Max Life Insurance is an Indian-based company that provides insurance services. It is one the largest insurance company in India. Max Life Insurance is one of the associate sponsors of RCB.
Lifebuoy
Lifebuoy is a brand which manufactures soap under the company Hindustan Uniliver Limited. Lifebuoy is also one of the associate sponsors of RCB.
Official Partners of Royal Challengers Bangalore
MakeMyTrip, Kingfisher Calenders, MediBuddy, DNA Networks, Mai Dubai, MILO, ON – Optimum Nutrition, Swiggy Instamart, EUME, boat, NVY, Royal Challengers Sports Drink, iB Cricket, Dark Fantasy, Dava India, and Rainbow Milk are the official sponsors of Royal Challengers Bangalore for Vivo IPL 2021.
Chennai Super Kings Sponsors
India Cements
Indian Cements is an Indian-based cement manufacturing company. The company is headed by N. Srinivasan who is the former Chairman of International Cricket Council. Indian Cements is the principal sponsor of CSK.
The Muthoot Group
The Muthoot Group is an Indian-based multinational Conglomerate. It is located in Kochi, Kerala. The Muthoot group is the principal sponsor of CSK.
Clear Shampoo
Clear is a brand under the company Uniliver which manufactures anti-dandruff shampoo. Clear is also one of the principal sponsors of CSK.
Nippon Paint
Nippon Paint is an Indian-based paint manufacturing company. The company was founded in the year 1881. Nippon Paint is one of the principal sponsors of CSK.
Dream11
Dream 11 is an associate sponsor of CSK for Vivo IPL 2021. They are also principal sponsor of Kings Punjab and Sunrisers Hyderabad.
EUME
EUME is a lifestyle company under Avon Lifestyle Pvt. Ltd. EUME is also an associate sponsor of CSK for Vivo IPL 2021.
Equitas
Equitas small finance bank is a bank which is located in Chennai. Equitas Small Finance bank is also an associate sponsor of CSK for Vivo IPL 2021.
Boost
Boost is an energy drink company which was established in the year 2001. Boost is one of the associate sponsors of CSK for Vivo IPL 2021.
Mai Dubai.
Mai Dubai is a bottled water plant which is located in Dubai. Mai Dubai is one of the associate sponsors of CSK for Vivo IPL 2021.
Official Partners
Muthoot Precious Metals Corporation, Nasher Miles, Cover It Up, Levista, The Souled Store, Sonata, FanPlay IoT, iB Cricket, Lupisafe, Hello FM, NAC Jewellers, Lilliputian Hub, boat, ASAP, SEVEN, Fast&Up, NOVA, Fever FM, Kaadoo are the official sponsors of Chennai Super Kings for Vivo IPL 2021.
Delhi Capitals Sponsors
EbixCash
EbixCash is one of the leading financial exchanges in India. EbixCash is one of the principal sponsors of Delhi Capitals. They are also the title sponsor of Kings Punjab.
JSW Group,
JSW cement is a subsidiary company of JSW group which is located in Mumbai. JSW cement is involved in the manufacturing and distribution of cement. JSW is also one of the principal sponsors of Delhi Capitals.
APL Apollo Steel Pipes.
Apollo Steel pipes is a brand under Apollo which is involved in the manufacturing of pipes. Apollo pipes is also one of the principal sponsors of Delhi Capitals.
Official Partners
Colgate, Bodycare, Nissan, Dream11, Kotak, BKT, boat, Coca Cola, Jio, acko, OkCredit, BondTite (Astral Adhesives), Livinguard, and FanCode Shop are the official sponsors of Delhi Capitals for Vivo IPL 2021.
Rajasthan Royals Sponsors
Expo 2020 Dubai
Expo 2020 is a world expo that is hosted in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Expo 2020 Dubai is the Principal sponsors of Rajasthan Royals.
Nine Sanitary Napkins
Nine Sanitary Napkins is a leading brand for female menstrual products. They are one of the principal sponsors of Rajasthan Royals.
TV9 Bharatvarsh
TV9 Bharatvarsh is a channel which comes under the company TV9. They are also one of the principal sponsors of Rajasthan Royals.
KEI Wires & Cables
KEI Wires and Cables is an Indian-based wires and cable manufacturing company. KEI Wires and Cables are also the KEI Wires & Cables
Colgate
Colgate is a toothpaste brand of India. Colgate is the associate sponsor of Rajasthan Royals.
BigBasket
BigBasket is an Indian-based online grocery delivery service. BigBasket is also one of the associate sponsors of Rajasthan Royals.
Official Partners
Kingfisher, Dream11, BKT, Yellow Panther, Sportz Interactive, ia (Interactive Avenues), epiphany, UAE City 1016, Big FM 92.7, Fandom, FanCode Shop, The Souled Store, Gully and PLUS are the official sponsors of Rajasthan Royals for Vivo IPL 2021.
Kings Punjab Sponsors
Royal Stag Music CDs
Royal Stag is an Indian-based Whisky brand which was launched in 1995. Royal Stag Music CDs comes under the company Royal Stag. They are one of the principal sponsors of Kings Punjab.
Fena Detergent
Fena detergent is a brand which comes under the company Fena. Fena detergent is involved in the manufacturing of detergent products. They are also one of the principal sponsors of Kings Punjab.
Boat
Boat is an Indian-based consumer audio and lifestyle brand. Boat is a principal sponsor of Kings Punjab.
Official Partners
Stylam, BKT, Colgate, CocaCola, FanCode Shop, T10 Sports, and Kingfisher Premium are the official sponsors of Kings Punjab for Vivo IPL 2021.
Kolkata Knight Riders Sponsors
Official Partners
Mai Dubai, Kingfisher Calander, BKT, iB Cricket, Lux Cozi, TV9 Bharatvarsh, Astral Pipes, JIO, Royal Stag Music Cds, Greenply, Colgate, Suniti Industries Ltd, Boat, Cricfig, Fanhood, The Souled Store, Gully and Medimix are the official sponsors of Kolkata Knight Riders for Vivo IPL 2021.
Sunrisers Hyderabad Sponsors
JK Lakshmi Cement
JK Lakshmi Cement is a brand under JK organization which involves in the manufacturing and marketing of cement. JK Lakshmi Cement is the title sponsor of Sunrisers Hyderabad.
TCL
TCL is a Chinese-based electronics company. It is one of fastest growing electronics company. TCL is one of the principal sponsors of Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Ralco Tyres
Ralco Tyres is one of the best tyre manufacturing company in India. They produce a wide range quality tyre. Ralco tyres are one of the principal sponsors of Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Valvoline
Valvoline is an Indian-based company which provides engine oils that is fully synthetic and the best diesel fuel additive. Valvoline is also one of principal sponsors of Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Nerolac paints
Nerolac paints in an Indian-based paint manufacturing company. It is the largest paint manufacturing company and the third largest decorative paint company in India. Nerolac Paints is also one of the principal sponsors of Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Official Partners
Jai Raj Steel, Colgate, Kotak Bank, Spektacom, FanCode Shop, Tyka, iB Cricket, Tenali Double Horse and Mai Dubai are the official sponsors of Sunrisers Hyderabad for Vivo IPL 2021.
FAQ
Who sponsored first IPL?
DLF sponsored first IPL 500 million Indian rupees between 2008 and 2012.
Who is the title sponsor of IPL 2021?
The title sponsor of IPL 2021 is Vivo.
Is IPL 2021 Cancelled?
No, IPL 2021 will be played at six venues in India, which is scheduled between April 9 and May 30.
Conclusion
These are the companies and brands which have signed up to be the sponsors of this year’s IPL. Sanjog Gupta, Head – Sports, Star India, had said that “Vivo IPL 2021 is returning to Indian soil with a lot of anticipation across the country” while launching the IPL campaign on 15 March 2021.
Coronavirus is here, and it’s making a big impact on every aspect of business. From trade market swings to airline collapses, the economy of many industries is taking its toll and having major constraints. Whole worldwide especially in Europe, those living in Italy, Spain, Germany and France have been the most impacted so far and the situation is set to worsen. The indirect effects for startups have also been huge, but some businesses are faring better than others. While many struggle to operate amid travel turmoil, others are cashing in on the health crisis by supplying much-needed medical solutions. Some London founders even launched an entirely new startup (called Epiderm) this year to help track employee and visitor contact through check-ins and calendar analysis. Similarly, there are clearly dozens of sectors that will likely be impacted such as dating apps, concert booking apps, edtech, will-writing startups, fitness apps, remote working tools and recruiting startups and so on.Here we discussed about impact of Coronavirus on Fintech Startups.
What about the sector of fintech?
Like everything else, it’s also likely to be under threat. There’s more to come from COVID-19 in the coming weeks where large and small fintech companies take a hit. Some could even benefit. Fintech firms globally also have already benefited from more flexible regulations in both emerging and mature countries as many efforts are being made to improve financial inclusion and serve a broader digital economy. According to a report from Ecosystem, there were five key trends that were expected to shape the Fintech market during 2020. The coronavirus pandemic could be devastating for many companies, but it’s also shining a spotlight on the power of fintechs across the world. They seem to be responding to the sudden challenge effectively, though uncertainties lie ahead.
Negative Impacts of Consumer Spending
Fear, panic, and quarantine measure heavily impact consumer spending. Canceled flights, closed stores, and social distancing have resulted into a drop in transaction volume at all levels of the economy. This means FinTech firms in the payments sector like Paypal, PhonePe, Google Pay, Stripe, or Chime will collect fewer fees, negatively impacting their profitability and valuations. Hardware shortages could also impact firms like Square, that rely on digital devices to support transaction processing. It’s evident that large businesses are already feeling the heat with the coronavirus outbreak. Companies such as Mastercard and Visa have cut their predictions for revenue due to the scare. This is because many users of credit cards are unlikely to use it to purchase flights, which is one of the more common transactions for credit card use.
The impact of the coronavirus outbreak is impacting both financial markets and consumer behavior as never before. At least in the short term, there has been a significant flight to safer investments by consumers, which could negatively impact venture capital funding of existing and new fintech firms. Combined with investors concerned with higher funding costs, the volatile market could be a catalyst for lower valuations. This potential drying up of financing to non-traditional financial services firms could force many firms to find collaboration or investment partners from traditional banking organizations. Some early-stage fintech firms may need to shut down.
Chinese fintechs will likely face the worst negative impact from the virus. Funding for Chinese fintechs was already down in 2019, likely due in part to trade tensions between the US and China. In 2019, fintechs only secured $298 million, down from $1.8 billion during the same time the year before. Having originated in Wuhan, China, the coronavirus is making the country’s economic outlook particularly uncertain, and more investors may shy away from the market as a result. That means Chinese fintechs might need to prepare for an even less funding-friendly environment in 2020 and shift their focus to a sustainable business model.
Positive Impacts
Whilst we’ve seen many negative impacts recorded in the fintech sector, there is a bright side in which some companies benefiting from. It’s encouraged many companies to adopt fintech for the purpose of their business. For example, the Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commissions company Ye Yanfei explained that blockchain is being utilised for medical data verification. Similarly, consumers desire for digital banking services will most likely increase, forcing many traditional financial institutions to fast-track digital innovation efforts. As a result, many legacy banks and credit unions may look to fintech firms or startups for assistance in bringing better digital banking solutions to the marketplace during this crisis. This increase in demand for digital solutions could provide a lifeline to fintech firms at a time when VC funding may not be an option.
In addition, weakening economies may force government organizations and regulators to stimulate the expansion of fintech solutions. For instance, South Korea is planning to temporarily ease regulations on fintech and ten other industries in March, in an attempt to jumpstart its economy amid the coronavirus outbreak. The World Health Organization has also encouraged contactless payments to contain the spread of COVID-19. Moreover, Google Trends shows a significant spike in the search requests regarding online loans which is a good news for many fintech firms.
Governments are appealing for Cashless Payment
Many countries are also encouraging the use of contactless payment to prevent the spreading of the virus any further from the exchanging of money. To ensure safety of citizens amid the coronavirus outbreak, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor, Shaktikanta Das, asked customers to use digital banking facilities as far as possible. Das added, “In the context of COVID 19, RBI and the government together are giving emphasis on encouraging digital payments. And over a period of time, various measures have already been taken to establish safe, secure, stable and affordable retail payment system such as the National Electronic Fund Transfer (NEFT) and the Immediate Payment Service (IMPS).” In South Korea, where regulations were once considered rather strict in the fintech domain, they’re now willing to ease the regulations that they have. This is to lessen the impact of the virus spreading and having a larger impact on the economy.
Reserve Bank of India(RBI) has appealed people to use Contactless Payment
It could boost demand for certain insurance types. The virus’ dominance in headlines may increase awareness of insurance and boost demand for health and life coverage, as well as business interruption and event cancellation coverage. For instance, the outbreak has led to many conferences and events being cancelled at the last minute. At the same time, insurers are not supposed to pay over claims of this outbreak. Most travel insurers, for example, exclude pandemic, epidemic disease or infectious diseases from their coverages, meaning that likely only few will be affected by the virus. A report has revealed India has shown a moderate increase of 7 % when it comes to availing online financial services during this period of social distancing.
21-day Lockdown to promote Digital Payment
India is currently going through a 21-day lockdown that was imposed by Narendra Modi-led central government, as part of its plan to battle the novel coronavirus COVID-19. Several prominent names in the Indian startup ecosystem have also been promoting digital payments. There are various digital payment channels people can use instead of transacting via cash. Digital payments channels include NEFT, IMPS, UPI, etc. Razorpay’s report highlighted that UPI, internet banking and wallet payments have all grown in India because of quarantine and social distancing. Surprisingly, Delhi and Bengaluru have noted a decline in digital payment but this is just a matter of time. Soon, digital payment will see a boom across all cities due to lockdown. So, this is a good opportunity for all fintech firms and startups to flourish.
Nadeesh Kareemdathil
